Nicholas Scott Faibish, a sixth-grader at Roosevelt Middle School in San Francisco, is shown in an undated school photo. Faibish, 12, was mauled to death by his family's two pit bulls Friday afternoon, June 3, 2005, in his apartment in San Francisco's Inner Sunset District near Golden Gate Park. He was with his mother and two siblings when the 80-pound dogs attacked him. (AP Photo/San Francisco Chronicle) ** MANDATORY CREDIT ** ALSO Ran on: 06-06-2005
Nicholas Faibish was fatally mauled by his family's pit bulls while alone in his own home on Friday. Ran on: 06-06-2005
Nicholas Faibish was fatally mauled by his family's pit bulls while alone in his own home on Friday.
ALSO RAN: 06/11/2005, 06/12/05
Nicholas Faibish Ran on: 06-24-2005
Maureen Faibish: &quo;I know I didn't do any- thing wrong.'' Ran on: 06-24-2005
Maureen Faibish: &quo;I know I didn't do anything wrong.'' UNDATED SCHOOL PHOTO, MANDATORY CREDIT FOR PHOTOG AND SF CHRONICLE, MAGS OUT, Ran on: 06-27-2005
Nicholas Faibish was killed June 3 in his S.F. home by two pit bulls being raised by his parents. Ran on: 06-27-2005
Nicholas Faibish, 12, was killed by his own family's pit bulls. Metro#Metro#Chronicle#6/27/2005#ALL#5star##0422984673 less

Nicholas Scott Faibish, a sixth-grader at Roosevelt Middle School in San Francisco, is shown in an undated school photo. Faibish, 12, was mauled to death by his family's two pit bulls Friday afternoon, June 3, ... more

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Nicholas Scott Faibish, a sixth-grader at Roosevelt Middle School in San Francisco, is shown in an undated school photo. Faibish, 12, was mauled to death by his family's two pit bulls Friday afternoon, June 3, 2005, in his apartment in San Francisco's Inner Sunset District near Golden Gate Park. He was with his mother and two siblings when the 80-pound dogs attacked him. (AP Photo/San Francisco Chronicle) ** MANDATORY CREDIT ** ALSO Ran on: 06-06-2005
Nicholas Faibish was fatally mauled by his family's pit bulls while alone in his own home on Friday. Ran on: 06-06-2005
Nicholas Faibish was fatally mauled by his family's pit bulls while alone in his own home on Friday.
ALSO RAN: 06/11/2005, 06/12/05
Nicholas Faibish Ran on: 06-24-2005
Maureen Faibish: &quo;I know I didn't do any- thing wrong.'' Ran on: 06-24-2005
Maureen Faibish: &quo;I know I didn't do anything wrong.'' UNDATED SCHOOL PHOTO, MANDATORY CREDIT FOR PHOTOG AND SF CHRONICLE, MAGS OUT, Ran on: 06-27-2005
Nicholas Faibish was killed June 3 in his S.F. home by two pit bulls being raised by his parents. Ran on: 06-27-2005
Nicholas Faibish, 12, was killed by his own family's pit bulls. Metro#Metro#Chronicle#6/27/2005#ALL#5star##0422984673 less

Nicholas Scott Faibish, a sixth-grader at Roosevelt Middle School in San Francisco, is shown in an undated school photo. Faibish, 12, was mauled to death by his family's two pit bulls Friday afternoon, June 3, ... more

2006-07-24 16:20:00 PDT SAN FRANCISCO -- The defense for the San Francisco woman charged in her home-alone son's dog-mauling death rested today after calling an animal behaviorist who testified that no one could have foreseen that the family's two pit bulls would turn vicious.

"This is simply a highly unusual event," Daniel Estep told the San Francisco jury hearing the case against Maureen Faibish, 40, who is accused of felony child endangerment in the death last year of her 12-year-old son, Nicholas.

"It's not something that I would have predicted," Estep said. "I wouldn't have predicted serious bodily harm to happen that afternoon."

Estep said the year-old pit bulls, 70-pounders named Rex and Ella, had not been aggressive before they mauled Nicholas in the family's Inner Sunset District home June 3, 2005. He said the bites that Rex inflicted on Nicholas earlier that day, leaving bruises on his chest and arm, and a previous incident in which Nicholas' younger brother was bitten on his hand, were not serious enough to conclude that the dogs were a menace.

Estep and his wife have a private animal behavior consulting practice in Denver. He said he had drawn his conclusions based on reviewing records and conducting interviews.

His testimony goes to the heart of the against Faibish, whose fate hinges on whether the jury concludes that a reasonable person should have known leaving Nicholas alone with the pit bulls would probably lead to his death or serious injury.

The prosecution says Faibish was criminally negligent for leaving the boy alone with the dogs for nearly three hours while she attended her daughter's school picnic. Nicholas was dead when she returned to the home on Lincoln Way.

Prosecution witnesses have testified that Nicholas was learning disabled and had difficulty following instructions. Given that, and given that the basement where he was supposed to stay had no working toilet, Assistant District Attorney Linda Moore argued that he would have been unlikely to follow his mother's orders to avoid the dogs.

The only way to reach a functioning toilet from the basement was to go through a room where the pit bulls were kept, witnesses have testified. Nicholas was found dead in an upstairs bedroom.

Faibish's attorney, Lidia Stiglich, has argued that the boy and his siblings played often with the dogs without incident.

Faibish told authorities that she had instructed Nicholas to stay away from the dogs because Ella was in heat and Rex might view see the boy as a predator. However, Estep said, mating dogs are not normally dangerous.

"It's not the sort of thing, where you say, 'Oh, the dogs are mating, lock up the kids,' " Estep testified. "It is not even common knowledge that is a potentially dangerous situation."

He said pit bulls can be family pets and are not inherently more dangerous than other breeds.

However, under cross-examination, he acknowledged that if Faibish had called him that day about the previous attacks on her sons, he would have advised her to keep her children away from the dogs.

Estep said dogs in general try not to inflict serious injury on the people. If dogs have problems with children, he said, his advice is to muzzle or leash the animals, separate them from children and keep the children under close supervision.

But, he said, dogs have attacked "out of the blue." The reason for Nicholas' mauling will never be known, he said.

"It was unusual, it was rare, it was extraordinary," Estep said.

Closing arguments are scheduled for Wednesday. The case could go to the jury of eight women and four men later that day.